Location
School of Law Seminar Room 3.10
Start Date
4-6-2026 2:30 PM
End Date
4-6-2026 3:00 PM
Description
This presentation shares seven years of lessons from maintaining Project CORA (Community of Online Research Assignments), an award-winning, open-access platform where librarians and educators share adaptable information literacy assignments. Launched in 2016 with grant support and strong community engagement, CORA saw early success: international page views across 150+ countries, 200+ shared assignments and teaching resources, and community-building features like "adapt this assignment" and leaderboards.
But when funding ended in 2018, Project CORA entered what many open projects experience but few discuss publicly: the precarious post-grant phase, when initial funding and enthusiasm fade but infrastructure still needs support. Annual contributions dropped sharply—from a peak of 107 assignments during 2016-2018 to just 34 between 2022-2024—while assignment views declined 82% over the same period.
The infrastructure still works but is aging. Like many grant-funded projects without ongoing resources, CORA was built to 2015 standards and now falls short of modern accessibility guidelines (WCAG 2.2). Requested improvements remained unimplemented for years due to limited resources. The platform is still used but increasingly outdated, highlighting the challenge of sustaining open infrastructure as standards and needs evolve. Recent developments offer an opportunity to explore what it takes to revitalize aging open infrastructure and rebuild community engagement.
This presentation situates CORA's trajectory within broader patterns across open educational resources, drawing on examples from other platforms that have faced similar sustainability challenges. It explores common themes: maintenance versus innovation funding, technical debt accumulation, and contributor participation barriers.
Attendees will see a live demonstration of CORA and have time to explore the platform hands-on. The session will close with a collaborative activity where participants share sustainability challenges they're facing and approaches they've tried, creating a collective resource for ongoing dialogue.
Beyond the Launch: Seven Years of Sustaining an Open Educational Resource After the Grant Ends
School of Law Seminar Room 3.10
This presentation shares seven years of lessons from maintaining Project CORA (Community of Online Research Assignments), an award-winning, open-access platform where librarians and educators share adaptable information literacy assignments. Launched in 2016 with grant support and strong community engagement, CORA saw early success: international page views across 150+ countries, 200+ shared assignments and teaching resources, and community-building features like "adapt this assignment" and leaderboards.
But when funding ended in 2018, Project CORA entered what many open projects experience but few discuss publicly: the precarious post-grant phase, when initial funding and enthusiasm fade but infrastructure still needs support. Annual contributions dropped sharply—from a peak of 107 assignments during 2016-2018 to just 34 between 2022-2024—while assignment views declined 82% over the same period.
The infrastructure still works but is aging. Like many grant-funded projects without ongoing resources, CORA was built to 2015 standards and now falls short of modern accessibility guidelines (WCAG 2.2). Requested improvements remained unimplemented for years due to limited resources. The platform is still used but increasingly outdated, highlighting the challenge of sustaining open infrastructure as standards and needs evolve. Recent developments offer an opportunity to explore what it takes to revitalize aging open infrastructure and rebuild community engagement.
This presentation situates CORA's trajectory within broader patterns across open educational resources, drawing on examples from other platforms that have faced similar sustainability challenges. It explores common themes: maintenance versus innovation funding, technical debt accumulation, and contributor participation barriers.
Attendees will see a live demonstration of CORA and have time to explore the platform hands-on. The session will close with a collaborative activity where participants share sustainability challenges they're facing and approaches they've tried, creating a collective resource for ongoing dialogue.